TL:DR- My mother served as both parents growing up, and also instilled in me the discipline to learn more about and practice art. Below are a series of portraits that illustrate her in all of her facets, and mirror some of the roles that she plays in my life.
My Mom, Mavis Prince, is on both the left and right hand sides. For years, she has been pursuing her dream of providing ministry and uniting couples. She's getting her second master's, of Divinity, later this year. And below, you will see details on two more portraits of her- as drawings. The reason for the three different faces have a great deal to do with how I visually process, in general. They also reflect the rich art education that she gave me as a child.
As I think back to how we were when I was younger, I get the overwhelming sense of "clothes" and "books". Style and class, you can say. I took to one more naturally than the other. In particular, she would have books on art, history, science, fiction, and number upon number of reference volumes. A favorite of mine was Horizon Folios, a cultural relic from the 60's and 70's heydey in art. I spent a long while of my childhood trying to look through each one. And some I got to reading all of the way through. Lots of good memories, and stories, came from those times.
Surprising or no, she brought more books than I've ever seen her read. She liked perusing popular titles in fiction, and she mostly left the art books to me after using them for a class or perfunctory research. Still others, she bought for me in bulk, in the off chance that I would like them.
This is how I got my first library. It is no longer in existence. However, I think of the motivation behind the creation of this space, and I also am reminded of the phrase, " The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit." She gave me those books, and they were all mine to learn or not learn from, to use or not use in the future.
Surprising or no, she brought more books than I've ever seen her read. She liked perusing popular titles in fiction, and she mostly left the art books to me after using them for a class or perfunctory research. Still others, she bought for me in bulk, in the off chance that I would like them.
This is how I got my first library. It is no longer in existence. However, I think of the motivation behind the creation of this space, and I also am reminded of the phrase, " The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit." She gave me those books, and they were all mine to learn or not learn from, to use or not use in the future.
The idea of planting thoughts onto fertile soil and looking to horizon is something that I think all parents, masculine or feminine, can draw some benefit from. The shape and size of this parent and their role on their child's life can shift and change size, but it still leaves a mark. A little bit of my mother, I like to think, goes into everything that I do. Finally, I believe that the terms "Mother" and "Father" are meaningless, in comparion to the responsibilities that they both share in regards to raising a good child. I celebrate my mother, for that reason, on Father's Day.
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